Showing posts with label Tarthian Empire. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tarthian Empire. Show all posts

Tuesday, May 12, 2020

Review Tuesday: A Stolen Heart by Kayelle Allen - #ScienceFiction #SpaceOpera #ReviewTuesday


A Stolen Heart cover

A Stolen Heart by Kayelle Allen

Luc Saint-Cyr is an immortal warrior, a master thief, a savvy businessman, and the loyal supporter of Pietas, king of the Ultras. He plays the role of dedicated Sen’dai – teacher and guide – to his Deshai, young apprentices in the Thieves’ Guild. One thing he’s never been, though – has never considered being – is a father.

When he rescues a kidnapped half-human, half-alien three-year-old from the clutches of corrupt officials within the Guild, however, he can’t resist the desire to protect and nurture the brave, clever and endearing child. For centuries, Pietas has been promising Luc a lifetime he can live for himself alone. Gradually he comes to realize that he wants that life to include being “Senthys’ Daddy”.

The Half-Kin child, spurned by the feline mistresses of his native planet, turns out to be a pawn in a desperate intergalactic plot that involves Luc’s oldest enemy. Immortals know that loving a Mundane will only bring eventual pain when the human’s short life is over. If his ambitious nemesis Phrei has her way, though, Senthys might not live beyond his childhood.

Kayelle Allen has been writing tales of the Tarthian empire for at least fifteen years. One of her earliest novels in this universe, At the Mercy of Her Pleasure, featured Senth as a young man, an exceptionally adept thief practicing his craft in the service of a sexually enhanced “Better”. In her recent work, Ms. Allen has been filling in the back stories of Senth, his half brother Khyff, and Luc Saint-Cyr himself. She has woven a complex set of relationships with Pietas, the “Bringer of Chaos” and his domineering sister Destroiya. I don’t know this for sure, but I have a sense that the author is continually discovering, or creating, these connections as she explores her own fictional worlds.

The results are sometimes fascinating, but equally often struck me as confusing and distracting. The core conflict in this book is the disconnect between who Luc is and the feelings he has for Senthys. Ms. Allen does a wonderful job depicting the child’s remarkable abilities and winning ways, and exposing Luc’s softer side as he falls in love with the boy. Obviously she needed an external threat as well, and Phrei’s attempts to obtain the technology for teleportation fills the bill. However, many of the scenes between Pietas and Luc seemed gratuitous. Their centuries-old relationship and the ambiguous feelings they have for one another are interesting in their own right, but did not seem to belong in this book. Even more aggravating were the repeated references to Six and Mahikos (characters from the Bringer of Chaos series). I haven’t read those books, though I’ve followed Ms. Allen for a long time and indulged in many excerpts. The relevance to this novel seemed tenuous.

Balanced against these annoyances is the author’s skill at developing complex and satisfying characters. I particularly enjoyed Shohn Lexius, the full Kin security agent who has left Felidae because she doesn’t agree with its gender politics. Flea and Gnat, two senior, veteran human members of the Guild whom Luc enlists in the fight against Phrei, are equally delightful. Ms. Fasra, Senth’s beloved teacher from Felidae makes a late but memorable appearance. Even the androids have surprisingly well-defined personalities.

Overall, I enjoyed A Stolen Heart. However, I think I would have liked it even better if the author had been more selective about dragging in references to other tales of the Tarthian empire. The richness of her fictional world is impressive. An attempt at tying all the historical threads together in a single book is bound to fall short.

Saturday, June 5, 2010

Touring the Tarthian Empire

By Kayelle Allen (Guest Blogger)

As an author of Science Fiction Romance, I've made it my policy to create detailed worlds and backgrounds where the characters in my books can play. My son Jamin studied computer graphics in college, and he's as much a SciFi buff as I am. Small wonder we have worked together on so many projects for my website, including the tour I set up.

I envisioned the Tarthian Tour Company as a travel service that would provide custom tours and trips for their clients. Designing the worlds, deciding how they were laid out and where, which was a military outpost and which were civilian, and other details of the kind took more work than I care to remember. I was lost in the empire for a few months, I think!

Jamin and I worked together to create the worlds, and it was during this time that he taught me how to use Photoshop. He has CS3 now, but I still have version 6 -- rather like the difference between a throwaway camera and a massive 3D one. I do my best to create the things I can, and then call him when I need help. If we've been back and forth on an issue, he'll answer the phone, "Photoshop Help Line, may I have your ticket number please?" LOL

Since I have a book coming out June 15th which partially takes place on the planet Felidae, I'd like to give you a quick tour. You can visit the planet's page here. http://kayelleallen.com/TTC-Felidae.html Details about the sixteen separate clans are found here. http://kayelleallen.com/Kin_Family_Trees.html

The cover is by Anne Cain.

ABOUT THE BOOK

When Kin Ambassador Mehfawni Ruh visits the capitol planet of the Tarthian Empire, she meets the human Khyff Antonello, a master of pleasure who satisfies her every craving for illicit and taboo sex. She expected a fling, but found love. Upon discovering her own people devastated his family, she longs to restore all they destroyed, but some tragedies can never be reversed. Her family demands she cast out the human, for if she keeps Khyff, she must deny her heritage and abdicate her future as ruler of her world. Mehfawni searches for an alternative, and stumbles upon Khyff’s darkest secret. Now, she must decide -- is his fragile trust the response of love and a healing heart -- or a ruse for revenge?

EXCERPT

Khyff held a drink, his free hand tucked in his pants pocket, while he listened to the man in front of him talk. Alitus had introduced them and then made a swift disappearance in the general direction of the empress, far across the room. Now Khyff was stuck pretending to be interested in an old man whose name he could not recall if his life depended on it.

The Kin female Alitus pointed out absorbed all of his attention, even though he wasn’t able to look directly at her.

Mehfawni Ruh. If I’d ever thought I’d be turned on by a Kin, let alone a Ruh, I’d have shot myself. That was before I saw her. Why didn’t they tell me she was beautiful? That isn’t the pheromones talking, is it? No, surely not.

He smiled at the man, content not to have to speak. Apparently, the guy only wanted an audience.

Mehfawni’s ears had flicked upward when she noticed him. Khyff sipped the drink. He knew enough about Kin to understand that meant interest. And then she’d flicked one in his direction. That was like saying hello.

She filled out that sparkly white dress, her body all feminine curves with large breasts and wide hips. She knows she’s lookin’ good. A real woman. Oops, real female, he corrected. Kin despised being called men and women. All too human for them.

Is she coming my way? He gulped another slug of the drink and reminded himself to slow down. His heart raced. Adrenaline would kick alcohol into his bloodstream faster, and he was going to need his strength if tales of Kin sexual prowess were true.

Someone mercifully captured the attention of the old man. Khyff turned to see where Mehfawni had gone.

She was standing directly behind him. Her gaze lifted from where she’d apparently been examining his ass. She did not look the least embarrassed at being found out.

She had big golden eyes with green flecks, her pupils perfectly catlike, and the longest lashes he’d ever seen. Up close, she looked more human than he’d expected. Her breasts were round and full, and the cleavage showing at the neckline teased his gaze.

“Hi.”

“Hi,” she said back, looking him up and down. “What’s your name?”

“Khyff.”

Her nose wriggled.

She was smelling him. Was that good or bad? He crossed mental fingers and hoped for good. Alitus had told him to use nonscented soap and avoid cologne. Kin liked the smell of sweat.

“Khyff, hmm? Sounds Kin.”

He smiled, used to the comment. He sipped the drink. “It’s not.”

She laughed. “Figured that one for myself.” She extended a hand. “I’m Fawni.”

He shook hands with her. They hadn’t told him she had such a cute nickname. He set his drink on a passing waiter droid’s tray. “Like a deer?”

“Like a Kin. My full name’s Mehfawni. It means hunter.”

He tucked both hands in his pockets, playing it slow, like Alitus had coached. “Let her make the moves. Let her seduce you.”

“Does it fit you, being called hunter?”

“Oh, yes, Khyff.” She extended one claw and slid it along his jacket lapel. She smoothed the cloth, sliding her hand down to his waist. “It does indeed.”

Damn. This is going to be quite a ride.

“So, Khyff. Are you intimidated by sexually aggressive women?”

His cock twitched. Are there women who aren’t? I’ve never met any. His turn to give her body the once-over. “Sexually aggressive women? No. But you’re no woman. You’re a Kin female. The way I hear it, your kind is aggressive in everything.”

Her fangs showed when she smiled. The bridge of her nose was higher, flatter than a human’s.

“Do you have a problem with Kin?”

“No. Do you have a problem with humans?”

“No.” She stroked her fingers down his lapel again, lingering on the one button of his jacket, near his waist. “Do you have a place?”

“Place?”

“Room.”

Hot damn. He hadn’t smiled this much in years.

Alitus had set him up with a penthouse with a fully stocked bar and plenty of snacks. Good sex always ended with the munchies.

“I’m staying in the hotel.”

“Then, tell me, Khyff” -- she unfastened his button -- “why are we still at this party?”

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For Women Only © copyright 2010 Kayelle Allen

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For Women Only; Antonello Brothers 2, a Tarthian Empire book Khyff is a master of pleasure with a tortured soul. Can Mehfawni redeem him, or will he destroy her for trying? Buy link: http://www.loose-id.com/For-Women-Only.aspx

ISBN: 978-1-60737-435-0 Genre: Erotic Science Fiction Romance, Multicultural, Interspecies, Action Adventure Publisher's Note: This book is a substantially re-edited, revised edition previously released by another publisher, and contains explicit sexual content, graphic language, and situations that some readers may find objectionable: violence, reference to abuse, reference to male rape.

At the Mercy of Her Pleasure; Antonello Brothers 1, a Tarthian Empire book

Buy link: http://www.loose-id.com/At-the-Mercy-of-Her-Pleasure.aspx

ISBN 978-1-60737-552-4

Find Kayelle on the web:

http://kayelleallen.com Homepage http://kayelleallen.com/Books.html Booklist http://groups.yahoo.com/group/edgeofperil/ The Edge of Peril - Inside the Sempervian World http://groups.yahoo.com/group/romancelivesforever Romance Lives Forever - Group http://myspace.com/romancelivesforever Romance Lives Forever - MySpace http://romancelivesforever.blogspot.com/ Romance Lives Forever - Blog http://twitter.com/kayelleallen Twitter http://tinyurl.com/facebook-kayelle Facebook http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MarketingForRomanceWriters/ Marketing for Romance Writers http://romancewritersbehavingbadly.blogspot.com Romance Writers Behaving Badly - Blog